Tulane Traditions
Nickname
From 1893 to 1919, the athletic teams of Tulane were known as the Olive and Blue for the official school colors. In 1919, the Tulane Weekly, one of Tulane's many student newspapers at the time, began referring to the football team as the Greenbacks.
On Oct. 20, 1920, Earl Sparling, editor of the Tulane Hullabaloo, wrote a football song which was printed in the newspaper. The song was titled "The Rolling Green Wave." Although the name was not immediately adopted, it began to receive acceptance. On Nov. 19, 1920, a report of the Tulane-Mississippi A&M game in the Hullabaloo referred to the team as the Green Wave. By the end of the season, the Hullabaloo was using the term Green Wave to refer to all Tulane athletic teams, as were many daily papers.
Though the "official" nickname was Green Wave the term Greenbacks and Greenies, for the color to their jerseys, stayed in use throughout that time period.
Mascot
In its infancy, Tulane's mascot was depicted as a pelican riding on a surfboard. The surfing pelican image lasted for more than 50 years.
In 1945, John Chase, a local cartoonist who drew the cover of the Tulane football programs introduced a mischievous little boy who was referred to as "Greenie"- the name of the football game program at the time.
In 1963, Athletic Director Dr. Rix Yard felt Tulane needed a more virile symbol for its athletic teams. Working with Elton Endacott, the manager of the Tulane bookstore, he arranged for a new mascot to be created. Art Evans, art director for Angelus-Pacific Co., in Fullerton, California who had created such noted college mascots as the Purdue "Boilermaker" and Southern California "Trojan" designed a determined looking Green Wave. In 1964 the determined Green Wave design was adopted and became the mainstay logo of the athletic department for over twenty years. During that time various mascots depicting a Green Wave were used, the last nicknamed "Gumby" by the students because of his resemblance to the children's cartoon character.
In 1986 a block "T" with waves running through was added as an athletic logo. It became the primary athletic symbol and adorned Tulane uniforms through 1997.
On August 19, 1998 a new set of athletic logos were unveiled to better identify and represent the Tulane athletic teams. The marks accentuate the Tulane colors or green and blue, the unique Green Wave nickname and re-establish the pelican as a visual symbol. A new pelican mascot was also introduced and given the name Riptide in a vote of the Tulane students.
History of the Green Wave
From 1893 to 1919, the athletic teams of Tulane were known as the Olive and Blue. In 1919, the Tulane Weekly, one of Tulane’s many student newspapers at the time, began calling the football team the Greenbacks.
On Oct. 20, 1920, Earl Sparling, the editor of the Tulane Hullabaloo, wrote a football song which was printed in the newspaper. The song was titled “The Rolling Green Wave.” Although the name was not immediately adopted, it began to receive acceptance. A month later, a report of the Tulane-Mississippi A&M game in the Hullabaloo referred to the team as the Green Wave.
By the end of the season, the Hullabaloo was using the term Green Wave to refer to all Tulane athletic teams, as were many daily papers, although as late as 1923, the name Greenbacks was still in use.
In its infancy, Tulane’s mascot was depicted as a pelican riding on a surf board. The surfing pelican image lasted for more than 50 years.
The “Greenie” was adopted in 1955. It was created by John Chase, a local cartoonist who drew the covers of the Tulane football program and those of many teams throughout the South.
When Dr. Rix Yard became the athletic director in 1963, he felt Tulane needed a more virile symbol for its teams. Working with Eldon Endacott, the manager of the Tulane bookstore, he arranged for a new mascot to be created. Several sketches were submitted by Art Evans, art director for Angelus-Pacific, Co., in Fullerton, Calif. The angry-looking wave was adopted in 1964, and the block “T” with waves became the Tulane athletics logo in 1986.
Tulane unveiled a new family of marks in August 1998. The new logos featured the return of the pelican to the Green Wave look, along with the use of a ”T” with a modern “wave” as a primary logo mark. A new pelican mascot was introduced and given the name Riptide by a vote of Tulane students.
In the summer of 2015, Riptide received its first make-over since its inception and featured a more modern, sleeker look.
Tulane Athletics reintroduced the "Angry Wave" logo as a secondary mark during the 2016-17 academic year. And on July 1, 2017, officially made the “Angry Wave” logo as the Green Wave’s primary mark of with the “T-Wave” logo remaining as the secondary mark. For more information click here.
The marks of Tulane University are trademarked by Tulane University and controlled under a licensing program administered by the Collegiate Licensing Company. Any use of these marks require prior written approval from the Collegiate Licensing Co. and Tulane University. For more information contact CLC at (770) 956-0520.
Songs and Cheers
The Olive and Blue
(Prize Winner in the contest conducted by the Tulane Alumni to give the Greenies a War Song, 1925)
Words and Music written by Marten ten Hoor and Walter Goldstein
Roll, Green Wave, roll them down the field!
Hold, Green Wave, that line must never yield!
When those Greenbacks go charging thru the line,
They're bound for Victory,
Hail Green Wave, for you we give a cheer.
Hail Green Wave, for you we have no fear,
So ev'ry man on ev'ry play,
And then we'll win the game today,
Hurrah for Old Tulane.
The Tulane Fight Song
Green Wave, Green Wave, hats off to thee,
Fight, fight, fight, for our vic-to-ry,
Shout to the skies the Green Wave's war cry,
The bravest we'll defy,
Hold that line for Olive and Blue,
We'll cheer for you,
So fight, fight old Green Wave,
fight on to Vic...to...ry!
The Tulane Alma Mater
FIRST VERSE:
We praise thee for thy past, O Alma Mater!
Thy hand hath done its work full faithfully!
The incense of thy spirit hath ascended
And filled America from sea to sea!
CHORUS.
Olive Green and Blue, we love thee!
Pledge we now our fealty true
Where the trees are ever greenest,
Where the skies are purest blue!
Hear us now, O Tulane, hear us!
As we proudly sing to thee!
Take from us our hearts' devotion!
Thine we are, and thine shall be!
THE HULLABALOO
(Reprinted from game program 1924)
A One, A Two, A Helluva Hullabaloo
A Hullabaloo Ray Ray
A Hullabaloo Ray Ray
Hooray Hooray Vars Vars Tee Ay
Tee Ay Tee Ay Vars Vars Tee Ay
Tulane!
